Archrock (NYSE:AROC) Upgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Archrock (NYSE:AROC) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Archrock from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Archrock from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Archrock in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Archrock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $32.40.

Archrock Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of Archrock stock opened at $29.98 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.05. The company has a market cap of $5.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.93. Archrock has a fifty-two week low of $20.12 and a fifty-two week high of $30.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.56.

Archrock Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This is an increase from Archrock’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 10th. Archrock’s payout ratio is 56.00%.

Insider Transactions at Archrock

In other Archrock news, SVP Eric W. Thode sold 40,740 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.10, for a total value of $1,022,574.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 184,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,623,821.60. This represents a 18.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Archrock

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AROC. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new position in Archrock during the 4th quarter worth about $61,144,000. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Archrock in the 3rd quarter valued at $19,603,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Archrock during the 2nd quarter worth about $16,027,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Archrock by 43.8% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,009,230 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $52,863,000 after purchasing an additional 611,773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Archrock by 78.7% during the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,237,956 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $30,738,000 after buying an additional 545,336 shares during the last quarter. 95.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Archrock

Archrock, Inc is a Houston‐based provider of natural gas compression services and equipment to the oil and gas industry in North America. Founded in 2004, the company supplies both short‐term rentals and long‐term contracts for compression solutions, serving upstream and midstream producers. Archrock’s offerings include engineered compression systems, aftermarket parts, maintenance and field services designed to optimize wellhead and pipeline operations.

The company’s core business activities focus on the design, manufacture, rental and sale of gas compression equipment.